Acupuncture is a collection of procedures involving penetration of the skin with needles to stimulate certain points on the body. it is believed that stimulating specific acupuncture points corrects imbalances in the flow of “qi” through channels known as meridians. Although acupuncture is relatively safe when administered by qualified practitioners using sterile needles and carries a very low risk of serious adverse effects, many people shun away from acupuncture procedures because of their fear of the acupuncture needles which penetrates their skin.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,250,067 describes an acupuncture treatment pad with multiple rigid needle-like or sharpened knife-like protuberances which penetrates a person's skin and used for short time, on the order of one to three minutes. The rigid needle-like or sharpened protuberances penetrates the user's skin and does not alleviate people fear of acupuncture procedures.
Accordingly, the claimed invention proceeds on the desirability of providing a sleeping massage pad which simulates the benefits of acupuncture without the association of needles or an object penetrating one's skin.